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Vision

The Wilkes Center aims to catalyze innovative science and solutions to address climate change. The Wilkes Center leverages the University of Utah’s unique position and environment to drive world-class research on climate change forecasting, impacts, and solutions and to place this science in the hands of decision-makers. Drawing on multidisciplinary centers of excellence at the University of Utah, the Wilkes Center strives for practical, integrative, and solutions-oriented research that can translate into policy around climate extremes, including wildfire and drought, air quality, natural ecosystems, carbon and water cycling, human environment and health. The Center will foster educational and research training programs that support climate innovation and develop a new generation of solution-oriented leaders.

Faculty Leadership

William Anderegg

Director
 801-587-3761
 anderegg@utah.edu

William Anderegg

Director
My research centers around the intersection of ecosystems and climate change. In particular, I strive to understand the future of Earth’s forests in a changing climate. Massive mortality events of many tree species in the last decade prompt concerns that drought, insects, and wildfire may devastate forests in the coming decades. I study how drought and climate change affect forest ecosystems, including tree physiology, species interactions, carbon cycling, and biosphere-atmosphere feedbacks. This research spans a broad array of spatial scales from xylem cells to ecosystems and seeks to gain a better mechanistic understanding of how climate change will affect forests around the world.
 801-587-3761
 anderegg@utah.edu

John C. Lin

Associate Director
 801-581-7530
 john.lin@utah.edu

John C. Lin

Associate Director
I am a Professor at University of Utah's Department of Atmospheric Sciences. My research focusses on the exchange of greenhouse gases and pollutants between the land surface and the atmosphere. I lead the "Land-Atmosphere Interactions Research" (LAIR) group, where we make use of computer models of the atmosphere to interpret observations. I am also a founding member of the Utah-Atmospheric Trace gas & Air Quality lab ("U-ATAQ"), which carries out observations of greenhouse gases and air quality throughout Utah.
 801-581-7530
 john.lin@utah.edu

Tim Collins

Leadership Team
  801-581-8218
 tim.collins@geog.utah.edu

Tim Collins

Leadership Team
I am a faculty person in the Department of Geography and the Environmental and Sustainability Studies Program at the University of Utah. My research focuses on environmental justice, health disparities, and social vulnerability to hazards/disasters. My projects apply multiple methods (e.g., spatial analysis, statistics, survey research, as well as qualitative) to examine human dimensions of flooding, wildfire, air pollution, climate change, and other environmental phenomena.
  801-581-8218
 tim.collins@geog.utah.edu

Gannet Hallar

Leadership Team
 801-587-7238
 gannet.hallar@utah.edu

Gannet Hallar

Leadership Team
The overarching theme of Dr. Hallar's research is using high quality measurements of trace gases, aerosol physical and chemical properties, and cloud microphysics to understand connections between the biosphere, atmosphere, and climate, along with the impact of anthropogenic emissions on these connections. More specifically, currently her research uses high elevation sites, combined with airborne measurements, to study the formation processes of Cloud Condensation Nuclei and Ice Nuclei.
 801-587-7238
 gannet.hallar@utah.edu

Sara Grineski

Leadership Team
 801-581-6153
 sara.grineski@soc.utah.edu

Sara Grineski

Leadership Team
I am a sociologist with training in geography who works on health and environment research. I use a variety of methods to address research questions of interest. My research expertise and contributions fall into several areas • Incorporating Health Outcomes into Environmental Justice (EJ) Research • Intra-ethnic Inequalities • Advancing EJ Methods • Broadening the Scope of EJ Research • Socioenvironmental Disparities in Asthma • Undergraduate Research and Mentoring
 801-581-6153
 sara.grineski@soc.utah.edu

Administrative Staff

Kyla Welch

Programs Manager
 1-801-646-6069
 kyla.welch@utah.edu

Ross Chambless

Community Engagement Manager
 (801) 646-6067
 ross.chambless@utah.edu

Max Seawright

Associate Director of Research Development
 (801) 646-6013
 max.seawright@utah.edu